1. For a Famous Physics Laboratory, A Quick and Painful Rebirth.
- Author
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CHO, ADRIAN
- Subjects
- *
PARTICLE accelerators , *X-ray lasers , *MATERIALS science , *GOVERNMENT policy - Abstract
The article discusses a rebirth of the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, née Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, and its use of an X-ray laser, reportedly the world's first. It notes director and particle physicist Persis Drell and SLAC's redefined mission including X-ray studies, materials science, and structural biology. Relations between SLAC and the U.S. Department of Energy, its owner, are noted. The X-ray laser, called the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS), was started on April 10, 2009 and experiments reportedly were initiated a week before publication of the article. Criticism by unnamed particle physicists is noted regarding the decision to abandon SLAC's last particle collider called PEP-II.
- Published
- 2009
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